This is a blog about epilepsy. I have lived with seizures for 25 years now and I want to share my experiences to allow others with epilepsy a chance to compare their experiences to mine and to allow those without epilepsy to understand further the condition and how it effects one. I had the VNS device implanted 4 years ago and have posted on that extensively. Please feel free to comment and I will try to respond.

Monday, December 18, 2006

Epilepsy v. XBox

Over the years I have heard many stories of how caretakers can tell if their loved one is having or is about to have a seizure. Jack's story is the first of which I have heard where a lack of playing a video game has been cited. Now, through the combined power of Jacks experience, your post, and Google searches, you may make it possible for hundreds of children living with epilepsy to convince their parents to let them play more XBox games. Any time there is a pause in the sound of Covenant aliens (Halo) being destroyed, their moms should check on them!

It is really amazing that he is able to play. When I was younger, my refexes were so slowed from the Tegretol I was taking, that I was completely unable to play action games. It was not that I couldn't move the controls, but my reflexes were too slow. Like Jack, I now take Lamictal, and my reflexes are not impaired... in fact, so drastic is the difference that I often wonder if the medicine improves my dexterity. This just hit me... If Jack can do well with one hand on an XBox control, I bet he could do wonders with the Wii controller - you only need one hand to use it!

2 comments:

We had an old Nintendo 64 which we weren't using anymore, so we decided to donate it to the Epilepsy Unit at Wake Forest. Fortunately, Dr. Bell was working the EMU that day and he's head of the department. He said that my concern that it would be inappropriate for people with Epilepsy to play the video game was unfounded, that it is rare indeed that seizures are triggered by playing video games.

And he was grateful for the donation. I realized that photosensitive seizures must indeed be rare when I noticed the use of strobe lights to alert EMU staff that someone was having a seizure.

I want to wish you a happy holiday. Your blog means a lot to folks out there, and reaches a whole new group every day through SharingOurDays.com. I honestly believe that the time we take to communicate our lives is having a big effect on people around the world. You are making a difference.

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What is Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a disorder characterized by recurring seizures, which are disturbances in the electrical activity in the brain. Seizure types range from a momentary disruption of senses to a loss of consciousness and violent movements that can last for minutes. There is no single cause for epilepsy; however epilepsy can sometimes be associated with an illness, head injury, or abnormal brain development. It is estimated that 1-2% of the population has epilepsy, and of those, approximately two-thirds respond well to medical treatment.